Dan Brown Readalikes

John CaseThe Genesis Code In an Italian church, a doctor confesses a sin so detestable that the priest refuses him absolution. In Washington, D.C., an agent investigates the mysterious murder of his sister and her son. His probe uncovers a plot by a secret sect in Italy, which involves the unspeakable sin. Strong language and violence. RC 45547

Deborah CrombieA Finer End Detective Duncan Kincaid and his lover, the newly promoted Gemma James, travel to Glastonbury to help Duncan's cousin, Jack Montfort. Jack, haunted by the spirit of a medieval monk, needs help when his friends' lives are endangered. 2001. RC 55014

Clive CusslerTreasure : a novel When the great Library of Alexandria was sacked in A.D. 391, perhaps some of its fabulous art treasures and volumes from its library escaped the flames and were ferried across the Atlantic. This is the premise of a suspense caper that features green-eyed agent Dirk Pitt, a James Bond type whom "no woman could completely possess." Some strong language. Bestseller. RC 26993

Nelson DeMilleThe lion's game: a novel John Coreyand FBI agent Kate Mayfield are at the New York airport to meet a Libyan terrorist nicknamed "the lion." But the aircraft lands with all of the passengers dead and the lion missing. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. Bestseller. 2000. RC 49310

Umberto EcoThe Name of the Rose A combination of religious heresy and a string of murders in a medieval Italian monastery brings Brother William onto the scene to rout out both the infidels and the perpetrator of the crimes. All of this revolves around secrets hidden in the abbey library, although what the mystery is remains elusive. Bestseller 1983. RC 19739

Umberto EcoFoucault's Pendulum Casaubon, a student of philology in the 1970s, is writing a thesis on the Templars, a monastic order of knights officially disbanded in the 1300s, though some say it only went underground and is still active. Casaubon discusses the order with his friends, Belbo and Diotallevi, and they decide to construct a bogus "Plan for the Templars." Before long the plan they invented has become real, and what started as a joke has become a nightmare. Bestseller. RC 30338

Michael FraynHeadlong Philosopher Martin Clay and his art-historian wife, Kate, are spending time at their English country cottage. While dining with neighbors, he notices a painting he believes to be a lost Dutch treasure by Brueghel. But Martin's investigation, without Kate's knowledge, leads to more trouble than he expected. Some strong language. 1999. RC 50790

Robert HellengaThe Sixteen Pleasures When Florence is flooded in 1966, twenty-nine-year-old American book conservator Margot Harrington offers her services to the country where she spent two years of her youth. She is helping restore a convent's collection when a nun discovers an ancient book of erotic drawings and sonnets. While attempting to sell the book to profit the convent, Margot, inspired by the book, begins an affair with an older married man. Explicit descriptions of sex. BR 09793

Sue Monk KiddThe Secret Life of Bees South Carolina, 1964. Fourteen-year-old Lily rescues her African American housekeeper--and substitute mother--Rosaleen, from the hospital. Rosaleen had been beaten for trying to register to vote. They flee to a safe place where Lily's battered late mother had also fled--a beekeeping operation run by three black sisters. Some strong language. RC 55533

Glenn KleierThe Last Day New Year's Eve, 1999. Following a geological explosion that destroys a secret research station in the Negev desert, a young woman appears, claiming to be the messiah for the approaching millennium. Performing miracles and revealing a new testament, Jeza attracts millions of followers. Reporter Jon Feldman senses the story of the ages and begins to investigate. Some violence. RC 47178

Robert LudlumThe Icarus Agenda Young congressman accepts a secret mission to rescue Americans held hostage by fanatical terrorists in the Middle East. Returning home a hero, he becomes embroiled in another plot--to murder the president. Violence and strong language. Bestseller. RC 26963

Katherine NevilleThe Eight: a novel. Two women share an adventure spanning three continents and two centuries. Catherine Velis, a computer expert, is sent to Algeria and becomes involved in the search for a jeweled chess set that holds the key to great power. Her story alternates with that of Mireille de Remy, a novice at the Montglane Abbey in the revolution-torn France of 1790, who helped hide the chess pieces for safe keeping. Some strong language and some descriptions of sex. RC 31050

Iain PearsAn Instance of the Fingerpost In 1663 Dr. Robert Grove, a fellow at New College, Oxford, dies of arsenic poisoning. His former servant, Sarah Blundy, is hanged for his murder. But some say Sarah is innocent. Four men offer their views on Grove's death and Sarah's innocence during this period of religious, scientific, and political upheaval in England. Some violence. Bestseller. RC 47002

Daniel QuinnThe Story of B Father Jared Osborne is dispatched to investigate a suspected Antichrist, known as B. As he engages B in dialogue, Osborne learns that B's tenets have less to do with God and spirituality than with man's responsibility to nature and the survival of the world. RC 43863

Daniel SilvaThe Confessor Israeli spy Gabriel Allon investigates the murder of his colleague Benjamin Stern. Stern was working on documents linking the Catholic Church to the Holocaust. Allon discovers an assassin hired by a conservative church group to keep its archives secret and the new pope silent. Violence and strong language. Bestseller. RC 55724

Barbara WoodThe Prophetess: a novel As the millennium approaches, archaeologist Catherine Alexander discovers six scrolls while searching for the Well of Miriam. After translating the scrolls, she continues her search for the seventh, which will uncover religious revelations that the Catholic Church and other governments want kept secret. RC 46722